Chapter 3

Chapter 3 – Summer

I was not in my own bed that much was for sure. I knew this before I opened my eyes. The bed was much too soft, the room much too warm and devoid of the sounds of my sisters sleeping. I opened my eyes just a fraction, my head was throbbing too much for me to flood it with light just yet. The room was bright with candlelight considering I had clearly been put there to sleep. There was no one here, no vampire guard to ensure my captivity when I awoke though surely I was kept here against my will.

This was Vorador's mansion! I should be proud to have found it but I couldn't help the vague panic that rose within me. A number of Sarafan had gone missing in this forest and never returned; if they had discovered Vorador then they had clearly been unable to escape. My brother and I were renowned for our prowess in battle but we were still amateurs, even more so compared to the age-old vampire who now held us captive. On the other hand Zephon himself suspected that Vorador might live here, when we did not return then the possibility existed that they would dispatch others to find us. We had much family in the town that could demand they search. Maybe this would not be so bad…even if my brother and I were killed in the meantime at least our brothers would find them and avenge us. I would have to hold on to this hope; it shall be my comfort in the days to come. No doubt they will torture me and subject me to such horrors I shall surely go mad before they kill me.

I opened my eyes fully and pushed myself up against the pillows. Considering I was a prisoner I was in a room of luxury. It was larger than the room I shared with four of my Sarafan sisters in the barracks and a hundred times more comfortable. The bed could have slept three others in it and I would still have had enough room to spread out. The sheets were the best that could be bought and I couldn't help but wonder how a vampire who lived in the deepest forests could acquire such goods. The room was lightly decorated with a painting of a beautiful woman on the wall. Even though she was clearly one of them her pale blue skin and soft smile radiated a sense of calm and quiet dignity.

There was a large wardrobe opposite the bed with the door left open so I may gaze upon the contents. I caught sight of a number of exquisite gowns, the likes of which I had only ever seen on the richest women in Nosgoth. I was tempted, oh so tempted, to get up and touch them but I imagined it to be some trickery of the vampires. I did not know what game they were playing, perhaps showing me all this finery to then increase my torment when they threw me into a cell without warmth and light. Besides I had sworn myself to the meagre life of the Sarafan sorceress and had no need for luxury or fine gowns.

A quiet knock at the door caught my full attention and I felt my mind instinctively search for an appropriate spell to protect myself. The door opened and the woman who entered took me off my guard. She must have been older than me, she must have killed hundreds of my kind and yet she looked so timid, not the attacking monster I had prepared myself for at all. She was exceedingly beautiful wearing, I noted, a similar gown to those that had been placed before my sight. She had blonde hair that hung about her face in a mass of curls and a face that looked like it had been hammered from fine china. The paleness of her skin was the only thing that alerted me to her vampiric state, otherwise she could have passed for a very beautiful noblewoman. She was carrying a tray with a steaming bowl and a glass of something (rather ironically) red, and it smelled, oh! How it smelled! I could not remember food calling to me so! My stomach gave a distant rumble and I realised quite suddenly how hungry I actually was. I had not eaten before coming to the forest and had no knowledge of how long I had been unconscious.

"You're awake," the woman noted. She spoke quietly and yet every word was clear. "I've brought you some food, it is not much but I thought you might not want to come down for dinner." I did not know why she treated me so but I would not pass up this opportunity for food. The girl who had devoted her life to the Sarafan screamed inside to resist them, to throw the food in her face and burn her with the first spell I could mutter…but my hunger was too strong and my head to dizzy to fight back, for the moment at least.

She placed the tray lightly on my lap and I practically drooled over the soup she presented to me. "If you do not like the wine I can fetch you some water." I noticed her blush somewhat, "It has been so long since we had guests I am sorry to say we were unprepared."

I did not reply, instead I picked up the spoon and attempted to eat as much of the soup I could as quickly as I could without degrading myself by drinking from the bowl.

She watched me with patience for a moment before she spoke again, "My name is Emmeline, yours?"

"Veronica," I replied between gulps. She was looking at my head now, examining the back of it. I could still feel where the vampires had beaten me, one clean smash across the back, it was still throbbing now though the wine was helping to ease the pain.

"I'm sorry, my sisters hurt you. They can be rough sometimes."

I stopped eating for a moment, "where is my brother?"

She looked genuinely puzzled, "you're brother?"

"The man who was with me," I pressed hastily, "I was not alone, my brother came with me, you captured him too did you not?"

She shook her head, "I'm sorry my sisters did not find anyone else, only you."

I knew I should not believe her but she seemed so sincere. She radiated trust but I think deep down I knew this could be a trick. I nodded and turned to my soup again, if my brother had indeed eluded their detection then he would most certainly return with friends to aid my escape and capture these fiends.

"Where am I?" I asked innocently.

Emmeline smiled at me, she knew I was not dull and that the crest above my left breast told them that I knew exactly where I was. "Why you're in the manor house of Lord Vorador," she replied as innocently as I had asked. "You have nothing to fear though," she added quickly as though I had given her any indication that I may be frightened, "he has given strict orders that you are to be treated as a guest, doubly so considering the undue force that my sisters used upon you."

"Your guest?" I scathed, "don't you mean prisoner?"

She continued to smile upon me, "I mean guest. You may leave when you are ready. I would not recommend it for the moment; wait until you're head has healed. When you are better you may leave if you wish it. Now, I shall leave you to your rest, if you desire anything I can be found in the second door on the left from here." She got up and even straightened the covers where she had been sitting before she left. "Good sleep," she whispered as she left, carefully closing the door so it did not even click.

She did not return and with her gone I dropped the need for etiquette. I picked the bowl to my mouth and drank deeply, ignoring the fact that it was still slightly too hot for consumption. I gulped the wine down which cooled my throat and left me feeling pleasantly full. I dropped the tray beside the bed and could not help myself fall back against the pillows, pulling the covers up to my chin. My brother had not been captured as far as I knew, Emmeline could have been lying but there was something about her that made me trust her. No doubt she had been exaggerating when she said I could leave at my will, but as she said I was not ready to test that option just yet. I could feel my eyelids growing heavy, the heat of the room, the softness of the bed and the food were all contributing to a pleasant feeling of drowsiness. If my brother had escaped capture then there could be no harm me waiting here a little while at least until my head stopped hurting…

Emmeline closed the door softly and turned down the hall. She had instructed that the candles in this corridor be left burning tonight should Veronica need her after all, but she would probably sleep through the rest of the night. Her sisters could be far too rough sometimes. She entered her own chamber, as she said, the second on the left. Her chamber was considerably larger though, as all her sisters had, she had a small lounging area leading into her bedroom. She let her door close and made straight for her bedroom. She wanted to be well rested for dealing with Veronica in the morning. When she had her wits about her no doubt she would be more formidable than she had been tonight, recovering from concussion and half asleep.

"How is she?" Emmeline jumped, in her longing for her bed she had not noticed Vorador sitting near the fireplace. Her fright fleeting, she took the seat next to him.

"She is fine. She asked if her brother was here and if she was a prisoner here."

Vorador kept his black eyes on the flames, "and you said?"

Emmeline let her head drop onto his shoulder and his arm came around her, "the truth, there is no man here and that she could leave when she wants."

"We let the boy go." Vorador told her, "I have no need of him here and if he returns then he can restock the pantry for a month or so. As for her…"

"Veronica," she interrupted him, "her name is Veronica."

"Veronica then, will she be well enough to leave soon?"

"Not for a few days I think," Emmeline replied honestly. Veronica's wound was greater than she had expected. It would take over a week to heal completely and until then the woods were hardly the best place for her to roam.

"Enough time to turn her you think?" Vorador asked.

Emmeline giggled, "it took less time than that to turn me and I came here with the sole purpose of destroying you."

Vorador nodded and smiled on his young bride, "how could I forget?" he rested his head upon hers where it lay. "Are you expecting her tonight?" he asked, knowing her well enough to know she would have offered her services to their injured guest.

Emmeline pulled away and shook her head, "No, she will probably sleep through the night, possibly until gone noon tomorrow, she will need her rest."

"Good," Vorador stood up and took Emmeline's hand, "I have a desire to stay here tonight."

TBC